I had heard they were meant to be burrowing species, so did have a depth of sand/eco earth mixture for her. But, until last night, no hole was built.

Last night I went to feed, she was no where to be seen, but the hole was there. I put the cricket down the hole, and this morning the crick was gone, and she was back out again. Anyways, I was quite proud, so took some pics

And her, today:

Last edited by AshMashMash on 1/25/2009, 6:49 pm; edited 1 time in total

my scorpio maurus cant make up their minds what they want to do... one week they build mad tunnels... the next they lay under a pile of stones!

I have read that this species, although a 'desert' species, they do need their humidity. In the wild they dig very deep burrows in order to access higher amounts of moisture

So I have come to the conclusion that they will only burrow when they need their humidity. if you keep their enclosure pretty moist anyway they have no need to burrow.

I am actually wondering with this behaviour whether they would also benefit from a false bottom enclosure usually associated with forest species, as they are not as susceptible to mycosis as other desert species regularly are. I keep mine pretty damp and regular checks have shown no traces of the disease.... might have to start a new thread for that idea to discuss the pro's n cons.

with doing a 3 tier substrate... the 100% sand in the bottom of the enclosure is still pretty wet and rest of substrate gets drier as you get to the surface

my scorpio maurus cant make up their minds what they want to do... one week they build mad tunnels... the next they lay under a pile of stones!

I have read that this species, although a 'desert' species, they do need their humidity. In the wild they dig very deep burrows in order to access higher amounts of moisture

So I have come to the conclusion that they will only burrow when they need their humidity. if you keep their enclosure pretty moist anyway they have no need to burrow.

I am actually wondering with this behaviour whether they would also benefit from a false bottom enclosure usually associated with forest species, as they are not as susceptible to mycosis as other desert species regularly are. I keep mine pretty damp and regular checks have shown no traces of the disease.... might have to start a new thread for that idea to discuss the pro's n cons.

with doing a 3 tier substrate... the 100% sand in the bottom of the enclosure is still pretty wet and rest of substrate gets drier as you get to the surface

anyway i have babbled on enough, great to see your s.m doing so well

Wow, very interesting thanks! Yes, the higher humidity is what I have heard, she seems to be doing fine so far.

She is back out of the burrow now. I will monitor when she builds one if it is dry or not then, out of curiosity, see what happens.

yes that information would be gratefully received. I have read so many posts where people have been having problems keeping them, and eventually died a short time after buying them. They have got a bit of a bad reputation because of this.

yes that information would be gratefully received. I have read so many posts where people have been having problems keeping them, and eventually died a short time after buying them. They have got a bit of a bad reputation because of this.

i think a lot of people make the mistake of keeping them to dry because they assume all desert scorpions need it very arid, but to be honest your's sound like they are ok so I dont think you need to worry at all, yours are doing what mine are doing and i have had mine nearly a year now